COMING UP: at Nevada Multi & Invitational (Reno, Nev.), Thursday-Saturday
 
OPENING WEEKEND: Track season opens this weekend in Reno, as OIT makes the journey to the Nevada Multi & Invitational, hosted by the University of Nevada. Tech will compete in four indoor meets, with the NAIA Championships to be held in Gainsville, Fla. The outdoor season features eight meets – with the Owls hosting both the Cascade Conference Multi-Event Championships and the OIT Invitational in April. The season ends in May with the CCC Championships in Ashland, followed by the NAIA Championships in Marion, Ind.
 
LAST SEASON / ATHLETES TO REPLACE: Last season, the OIT men placed seventh at the CCC Championships, with the women's team taking eighth – both teams showing improvement in the team scores. The Hustlin' Owls will have to replace two former All-Americans – distance runner Jonas Hartline and javelin thrower Jose Ignacio, with the Lady Owls having to replace national qualifier Ally Odell (heptathlon) and middle-distance runner Eva Brady.
 
MEN'S PREVIEW: A veteran group leads the Hustlin' Owls, while a quality recruiting class has added key components to the roster. In the sprints, returner Michael Sanchez will be joining by freshman Bryson Teal, with Tate Wyman running the high hurdles and newcomer Ryan Doherty racing in the intermediate hurdles and 400-meters. The trio of Austin Kuromi, Tucker Piper and Bryce Worrell are experienced middle-distance runners, with freshmen Kai Miles and Kiernan Teasdale giving the Owls a chance for a quality 4x800-meter relay team. Both Tychon Preston and Toby Ruston will anchor the distance group, with Hunter Enick looking to make a splash in the shot put, discus and hammer. Newcomers Cole Leader and Tyas Selby will be key – Leader in the jumps and Selby among the top prep vaulters in Oregon. All-CCC pick Eli Stevens, along with Bud Patzke, are Tech's all-around athletes – as Stevens was a national qualifier in both the multi-events and the pole vault, with Patzke scoring points in last season's CCC Championships in the decathlon.
 
WOMEN'S PREVIEW: The Lady Owls will have their largest roster in years and have the depth to potentially have an athlete in every event at the CCC Championships. Tech will show marked improvement in the sprints, thanks to three multi-sport athletes – soccer players Sydney Soskis and Tiffany Humpherys, along with basketball player Brooke Anderson – all whom had outstanding prep careers. Returners Jane Kuebrich and twins Charis Childers and Corinne Childers will race the middle distances, along with Lily Everson in the 400 and 400-meter hurdles, with transfers Raleena Maxson and Chloe Crawford competing in the distance events. Newcomers Sophia Small and McKenna Donovan will focus on the jumps, while in the throws, transfer Aurora Parsons joins Emily Bitler and Ciena Gregory in the discus, shot put and hammer, with Madi Parsons and Kate Miles throwing the javelin.
 
WORDS FROM THE COACH: "We are excited to see our athletes compete during the indoor season, beginning in Reno," said third-year head coach Mike Anderson. "It will be a great opportunity for our women's sprint crew to face quality competition and I believe they will surprise people this year. I am excited for our throwers, who have been training well – led by Hunter Enick and Aurora Parsons. Eli Stevens has had a great offseason and has an outstanding chance to return to Nationals indoors in the heptathlon and outdoors in the decathlon, with the staff looking forward to Tyas Selby compete in the pole vault – as he has a shot to hit a national qualifying mark and a chance to break the indoor vault record."